


The Passage of Time

by Spectre_Cainus



Series: Alt. Team AU [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: I made thinkfast again, M/M, hey lego bring back the OTHER elemental masters please, this ship is slowly taking over my life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-04 23:59:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10292858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spectre_Cainus/pseuds/Spectre_Cainus
Summary: After a certain incident involving Neuro's family and spiked food, Turner finally snaps and tries to take revenge.It would have worked, too.If only he was unemotional like his father.((Don't read if you don't want to be spoiled for Hands of Time!))





	

**Author's Note:**

> Slight spoilers for Hands of Time so yeah
> 
> Also there's a bit of implied sexual stuff with the violation but I wouldn't elaborate on that
> 
> AND Turner is the Master of Time in this fic, and the son of Krux, the older Time Twin.

"It's my fault." Neuro looked at the other Elemental Masters. "I should've restrained myself better… but now here we are."

He turned back to where Turner was, at the peak of the altar. It was too high up for Neuro's liking, but in order to stop him from bringing back the alternate timeline's Nadakhan, he would have to climb.

If it weren't for the alternate Skylor's help, they would have never known where to find the rogue Master of Time.

"Neuro, you don't have to do this!" Neido grabbed the telepath's hand tightly, unwilling to let go of his old student. He looked deep into his eyes, hoping that just for once, he would be able to change the Master of Mind's mind.

Neuro smiled sadly, before shaking his head and pushing Neido's hand away. "I must. I'm the whole reason he's mad."

With a quick salute, the Master of Mind dashed to the base of the altar, grabbing onto the handholds Turner had made for himself earlier on. Skylor tried to follow, only to be stopped by two Vermillion Guards. "Where do you think you're going, missssy?" One hissed sarcastically.

The Master of Amber growled, pulling out a gun and aiming it at the guard nearest to her. "Get out of my way before I blast you both to bits," she stated flatly.

The guards quickly obeyed, running off and crashing into each other before returning to their smaller Serpentine forms. With that 'obstacle' out of the way, Skylor climbed as fast as she could after Neuro, who was already halfway up the altar.

Behind the now rogue Master of Time, the Time Twins shared a concerned look with each other. "Brother," Acronix whispered as softly as he could over the sound of the timelines being broken into, "is releasing an angry Djinn on all of Ninjago really a good idea?"

"Griffin is my son," Krux replied angrily. "If there's anyone I trust aside from you, its him. He did help us capture the current Master of Metal to forge weapons for our army, after all."

"But it's Nadakhan!" Acronix exclaimed. "If our estimations are correct, he's currently on a rampage after that timeline's current Master of Water's death! He's got a Sword of Souls filled with all the other Elemental Masters' powers, and not to mention he's the King of Djinago!" He waved his hands in the air for emphasis. "Infinite! Wishes!"

"Griffin knows what he's doing." Krux muttered, sounding slightly uncertain now that Acronix had managed to voice his concerns. Was unleashing what was essentially the most powerful being of their timeline on another without any methods of stopping them the best choice for revenge?

"Turner!"

Krux's eyes widened in surprise when he heard someone calling out for his son. He moved closer to the edge of the altar, growling when he finally caught sight of the rapidly approaching Masters of Mind and Amber. "Acronix!" he called out loud to his twin, drawing the Pause Time Gauntlet from its harness. "You handle the girl! I'll take care of the old man!" He aimed the gauntlet at Neuro, only for the telepath to extend his staff upwards and knock the artifact out of his hands before he could activate it. With a grunt of frustration, the older twin moved closer to Turner, grabbing his son's pair of sai and raising it in a defensive stance.

Neuro pulled himself up with ease, pointing his staff at Krux with an angry expression on his face. "I wasn't aware that you'd be an even bigger hypocrite then Chen," he snarked sarcastically.

"Says the one who violated my son," Krux replied impatiently. "He admired you, you know. Ever since he found out I was his dad, he would drop by and just go on and on about how great of a leader you were. Do you know how broken he was when your perverted family forced him to do those things?!"

"You aren't a good father, not even by an inch!" Neuro dashed forward, swinging his staff directly at Krux. The older Time Twin blocked the blow with a swing of his sai, before returning the favour by slashing at the Master of Mind. The blades glanced off the metal staff with a loud metallic ring, drawing Turner's attention from the summoning.

"Neuro…" The Master of Time's voice was heavily distorted, his eyes glowing a wide range of colours as he watched the fight betwen his father and ex-teammate. The telepath looked up at the mention of his name, distracting him momentarily before he was struck by a stray bolt from Acronix's Slowmo Time Gauntlet.

Krux took advantage of the distraction, throwing a dagger towards Neuro before running back to Turner's side. "Hurry up, Griffin!" he urged, a hint of desperation in his voice. "Bring back Nadakhan before he stops us!"

"I…" Turner's face was twisted into a look of sadness, before anger took over once again. "Yes… I will bring back Nadakhan and unleash my fury on all of Ninjago!"

"Are you even listening to yourself?!" Skylor yelled at Turner, firing a tranquillising dart at Acronix. "Ninjago is your home! Is one little inconvenience going to stop you from protecting the place where your loved ones live in?"

Turner let out a scream of frustration, prompting Krux to take his twin's place to fight the Master of Amber. The effects of the Slowmo Time Gauntlet faded off, causing the dagger thrown at Neuro to rapidly accelerate towards him. The telepath sidestepped the blade, before turning his attention back to Turner.

"Turner, I'm really sorry!" Neuro yelled over the sounds of the summoning. "I should have stopped them back then!"

"Back then?!" Turner growled angrily at Neuro. "You're nothing but a selfish loner who has to rely on his family for everything! It makes you weak!"

Neuro hesitated, before dropping his staff on the ground. He slowly approached the rogue Master of Time, stretching his arms out and pulling him into a gentle hug. Turner's eyes widened in surprise, struggling slightly against the telepath. He eventually calmed down, tears in his eyes as he started crying into Neuro's shoulder.

"There, there…" Neuro gave him a few gentle pats on the back. "It wasn't your fault."

"I-I'm… so sorry…" Turner sobbed, hugging the Master of Mind tighter. "I d-didn't mean to…"

Neuro nodded, stroking the Master of Time's back gently. "Then stop the summoning and everything will be okay…"

"No!" Krux interrupted them, pushing Neuro aside. "Griffin, snap out of it! Remember what that man did to you!"

"We were both at fault!" Neuro retorted. "Both under the effects of aphrodisiacs! If he says that I violated him, then he had violated me as well!"

"Shut up!" Krux grabbed the Master of Mind by the collar, dangling him over the edge. He turned back to his son, who was now staring at Neuro with a blank expression. "Griffin! Finish up the summoning!"

There was a short pause before Turner finally answered, "I can't."

"You what?!" Krux's grip on Neuro tightened, nothing but anger on his face. "You are my son! You will listen to what I say, damn it!"

"If you really are my dad, then you wouldn't want to destroy Ninjago!" Turner's eyes started glowing again, the time portal he had created slowly crumbling away. "We LIVE here! This is where we all grew up! This is where you HAD ME!"

Krux scowled at him, taking one of the sai and aiming it at Neuro. "Do it, or I'll kill this man right here and now."

"Hurt him, and I'll make sure you crumble into nothing but dust." Turner's hands were surrounded by a green aura, which he pointed towards his father. "Now let him go."

The older Time Twin just smiled. "Gladly!" he exclaimed, releasing Neuro and throwing him off the altar.

Turner's eyes widened in shock, before he blasted Krux twice with green bolts. The aura quickly turned red as the Master of Time threw himself over the edge after the telepath.

"NEURO!" he cried, trying to aim for him. His bolts kept missing, no matter how hard he tried.

"Griffin…"

Then everything went black.

* * *

When he came to, Turner found himself stripped of his robes. He was wearing a stripped monochrome jumpsuit, one commonly worn at…

"Kryptarium Prison," he whispered in astonishment to himself. How had he ended up in that rathole?

He stood up, only to notice the Vengestone bracers around his wrists. He reached up to his face, trying to find the aviators that he always wore.

Nothing.

The sound of footsteps drawing near interrupted his thoughts. The Master of Time looked up to find Neido looking down at him. "N-Neido…"

The Master of Imagination just shook his head in disappointment. "If you're going to start begging for mercy, then I'm sorry to say that you won't find any here."

"What's going to happen to me?" Turner asked. "And is Neuro okay?"

Neido hesitated before replying. "You're going to stay here for the rest of your lifespan. Eventually, when you are close to death, they will take a bit of sperm from you to keep up the bloodine. Any offspring created from you will be closely monitored, to prevent any incidents such as what got you in here."

"And Neuro?" Turner did not seem fazed by the sentence he had been given. "Is he okay?"

"I'm sorry."

"W-what are you sorry for?"

"We couldn't save him in time." Neido admitted, lowering his gaze to the ground.

Turner clenched his fists, gritting his teeth as Neido's words sank in. "How did he…"

"We didn't find his corpse, but we did find his bloody robes. The mourge said it was likely from breaking his neck."

Turner fell silent.

"His funeral is—"

"Leave."

Neido's eyes widened in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE!" Turner slammed his fist against the metal bed he was sitting on. "I NEVER WANT TO SEE ANYONE OF YOU GUYS EVER AGAIN!"

The Master of Imagination opened his mouth to speak, before shaking his head and leaving the cell.

As soon as he left, Turner burst into tears, crying loudly and calling out Neuro's name in grief.

"I'm so sorry…!"

* * *

Ten years had passed by in the blink of an eye. Or at least, that was what Turner felt.

Krux had passed away a long time ago, after Turner had rapidly sped up his aging.

No one knew where Acronix was, but it was highly suspected that he had killed himself to join his twin in the afterlife.

The last Turner had heard about his team, was that Skylor had taken over as the leader. He was angry at first, although that anger soon gave way to grief.

How dare he be angry about something that he had caused?

None of the remaining Elemental Masters visited him. The one person he trusted in his life was gone. And his family…

All dead.

Turner no longer cried. He threw his emotions in the void a long time ago in order to survive.

He got up from the metal bed, looking up at the single light dangling from a thin string of metal attatched to the ceiling. It was the only source of light in the room, and often burnt out, which left the Master of Time in total darkness.

Out of the blue, the metal door sealing the cell slid open, marking the first visitor Turner had in a decade.

"Who are you?" He asked, unable to make out any features on the visitor's face.

The visitor let out a soft laugh, leaning against the door. "It's been ten years, and you've already forgotten me? I thought Masters of Time had much longer memory spans than this!"

Turner sighed, lying back onto the bed again. "Greetings, Skylor."

The Master of Amber smiled, sitting down on the bed. "I see that you are functioning well, my old teammate."

Turner grunted in response.

"I heard they don't let you shave or cut your hair here," Skylor commented. "But nothing seems to have changed about you."

"We age slower than you normal Elemental Masters," Turner replied, looking up at the Master of Amber. Her hair was still tied up in a ponytail, although it was longer than he had remembered, and her face looked more mature. "I see that you have grown a lot in contrast."

"Leading a team forces you to mature much faster than you expect to." Skylor paused for a while. "I guess now I know how he felt while leading the team."

Turner looked away, not wanting to comment on that.

"He's actually the reason why I came to see you, Griffin."

"I can tell. It's Neuro's death anniversary, correct?"

Skylor nodded slowly. "And I'm taking you out to pay your respects to him in person."

Turner groaned, clearly not keen on the idea of having to potentially meet the rest of Neuro's family. "Can we not?"

"You know…" Skylor turned to face him. "We always knew that you were upset because you didn't get a chance to tell him the truth."

"The truth about what?"

"That you fell for him while you were planning the summoning," Skylor replied softly. "I read your mind back then, while you two were hugging. You were so happy that he trusted you enough to drop his weapon. That he didn't hate you even after you tried to kill him."

Turner sighed. "That doesn't change anything. I did end up killing him."

"Krux was the one to throw him off the altar, Griffin."

"Stop calling me that!" Turner growled at her, causing the Master of Amber to gasp in surprise. "Only my grandpa is allowed to call me that!"

"Only your grandpa and Neuro, you mean."

"Shut up," Turner replied half-heartedly. "I really hate hearing his name."

Skylor nodded. "Understandable. But will you come with me to pay your respects?"

Turner finally gave in, nodding slowly as Skylor smiled. "Why are you smiling?" he asked.

"Because Jacob now owes me fifty bucks."

* * *

Neuro's remains were kept in a columbarium, where he was placed in a special room alongside the rest of the deceased Elemental Masters. The entire room reeked of death, yet to Turner there was something honourable about the entire concept of holding the previous Masters in the same room.

Skylor had left him in the room alone, although she had assured him that if he needed anything, she would be outside in the hallway. The Master of Time was still forced to wear the Vengestone bracers, although he no longer felt the weight of them with the passing of time.

Turner kneeled down in front of Neuro's niche, which had a monochrome photo of the departed Master of Mind smiling happily at the camera. His alias, true name forgotten by even his family, was engraved into the plaque with bright golden letters, trinkets from his life placed around the marble.

The Master of Time remembered every story that came along with the trinkets, each one told to him by Neuro himself.

"This toy car was the first thing he had saved up for using his allowance," he mumbled to himself, gently touching the red car.

"And this pocket watch was the first thing he bought as a gift using his very first salary," he continued, glancing over the bronze watch without much thought.

"That ring…" Turner paused, the unfamiliar piece of jewellery catching his eye. "He never told me about a ring…"

"Because I just bought it today."

Turner turned around in shock, staring at the new arrival in shock. "W-who are you?" he asked, voice shaky. "And how did you get past Skylor?"

The stranger chuckled, walking closer to Turner with a smirk on his face. "Simple, really. She let me in."

"You didn't answer my first question." Turner eyed the stranger, looking for any features he recognised. The man had a full head of white hair, messily swept to one side. His cool grey eyes watched every movement Turner made with an interested look. Despite his unfamiliar appearance, the Master of Time could not help but wonder if he had met this person before.

"You're right to think that you've met me before," the stranger interrupted, scaring him slightly. He gave the confused man friendly smile. "Griffin, correct? My, you haven't changed even a bit!"

Turner was about to ask how he knew him, only for the answer to hit him like a brick. Tears started welling up in his eyes as he continued to stare at the stranger.

"N-Neuro?"

The stranger nodded, combing his hair back into a more familiar style. It looked strange without the grey stripe down the middle, but that was not the main concern at the moment. "Yes, that was me… but I go by Norman now. It's less conspicuous."

Turner shook his head, unable to believe that the man he thought he had killed was standing right before him. "How did you survive?"

"Ah, that. Well you see, I had Skylor fake my death." Norman chuckled softly at the confused look on Turner's face. "She use the powers of Light and Smoke to conceal me right before I hit the ground, and used a mixture of Gravity and Time to let me escape unharmed."

Turner stood up slowly, before running towards the Master of Mind and hugging him tightly. "I-I thought…"

"That you had killed me. I know about that, Griffin." Norman returned the hug, humming softly to the crying Master of Time. "You how no idea how much I've missed you while in hiding, my old friend."

"Why didn't you visit me?" Turner asked softly. "Or send Skylor to tell me what you wanted to say?"

Norman shook his head. "Skylor was busy with the team, and there was no way I would be able to visit you in Kyrptarium without any proper identification. Besides, I had to travel constantly since I was not used to this persona and often came close to revealing my true identity."

"But why?" Turner asked again. "Why did you fake your death?"

"I needed some time to myself," Norman replied. "I had many thoughts going through my head after the entire… incident. I wanted to get them sorted out before I talked to you again."

Turner was about to accept his answer, only to quickly push the Master of Mind away. "And how do I know you're not Chamile in disguise? Or Skylor?"

Norman let out a short laugh, shaking his head slightly before pulling Turner into a loving kiss. The Master of Time struggled initially out of surprise, before giving in to the sensation and kissing the telepath back.

It was an old feeling, one he had only felt twice prior to that day. The first time was to snap Neuro out of a trance he was put into by a bunch of Hypnobrai, and the second was during the incident.

Turner hated to admit it, but he had never kissed anyone before his first kiss with Neuro. All his past lovers did not care about kisses, and even shunned him when he asked if he could kiss them. He did not take any of them seriously, since they just wanted to be with him for his fame, however…

Neuro, or Norman, was different. Ever since his stay at Kryptarium Prison, Turner had been constantly struggling with his thoughts regarding the telepath. A feeling he had never felt before in his life.

Love.

He had fallen for the telepath over those ten years of isolation, only able to think about him whenever he was upset. Imagining how the Master of Mind would comfort him in his darkest times made his heart flutter with joy, a deep blush spreading across his face at the mere thought of Neuro telling him how much he loved him back.

So he was determined to make sure that he treasured this moment of intimacy with the Master of Mind, after ten long years of longing for him.

After what felt like an eternity, Norman broke the kiss, panting slightly as he smiled brightly at Turner. "I—"

Turner pressed a finger to the telepath's lips, smirking as he leaned closer to his ear. "I know," he whispered softly. "I read your mind."

The Master of Mind stared at him in a mixture of shock and amusement, before chuckling slightly. "Oh, since when did we switch elements?" he asked in a joking manner.

"Actually…"

"You glanced into a timeline where I told you, then decided to tease me by cutting me off."

Turner chuckled softly. "Yeah, so what if I cheated?"

"Then I'll have to punish you by disappearing for another decade," Neuro replied. Noticing Turner's distraught expression, he let out a laugh. "I'm just kidding!"

The Master of Time shook his head in disappointment. "I can't believe I fell for you," he muttered. He stared at him for a few moments, finally asking the question he had since the beginning. "What is that ring for?"

"Well, I told you the truth," Norman admitted. "I bought it today."

"But why?" Turner picked up the ring, turning it around to examine the piece of jewellery. It had two diamonds surrounding a bright red ruby in the center, similar to the one Norman was wearing around his neck from a silver string. Norman's ring had a black diamond instead of the ruby, however. "Why would you buy something like this? It must be extremely expensive…"

"Well, my future life partner deserves only the best, no?"

Turner blushed deeply in surprise. "P-partner?"

Norman nodded, taking the ring from Turner and dropping down on one knee. He took one of the other's hands in his own, looking up at him with a loving expression. "Griffin Turner, would you make me the happiest man in Ninjago by marrying me?"

"M-marry you?!" Turner looked into Norman's eyes, looking for any sign of him telling a joke. When he saw none, the Master of Time broke into a smile, nodding quietly in response. "Of course I would, Norman."

The Master of Mind carefully slipped the ring onto Turner's ring finger, kissing his hand gently as he stood up to meet his partner's gaze. They smiled at each other for a bit, only to be interrupted by Skylor running in and pointing at the two with a bright smile on her face. "Ha! I called it!"

"What did you call, Skylor?" Norman looked at her in confusion.

"Jacob and I bet on whether I could get Griffin to come 'pay his respects', and I won that bet…" The Master of Amber smiled cheekily. "And Wu, Neido and I bet on whether you would ask Griffin to date you… or marry you."

"Wu and Neido know I'm alive?" Norman asked in a mixture of fear and worry.

Skylor nodded. "Yeah, they do. Wu knew I was using my powers during the rescue, so I had no choice but to tell him the truth. Then Neido tailed me when I went to check up on you about two years later."

"And you never told me about their knowledge because…"

Skylor shrugged. "I don't know. But either way…" The Master of Amber mimiced a cash register noise. "You guys just made me a hundred and fifty dollars richer."

Turner laughed softly, while Norman just shook his head in disappointment. "You better treat us to something nice now that you're richer," he joked.

"Sure," Skylor replied. "Once we get Griffin as far away as possible from this place."

"Wait, what?" Turner looked between the two masters, not liking where the conversation was going. "Where am I going?"

"You're going where I went: missing." Norman ruffled Turner's hair reassuringly. "We're gonna fake an attack that got you out, then you're going to live with me until they forget all about you."

The Master of Time frowned at the idea. "So that means that I'd have to get a fake identity and all, right?"

"Wu and Neido are nearby, ready to create the fake assailants." Skylor gestured to somewhere outside of the columbarium. "If anything goes wrong, use your powers to rewind Time."

Turner raised his hands, showing the Vengestone cuffs to the duo. "I can't. It's pure Vengestone."

Skylor thought for a while, before pulling out a hairpin and picking the lock on the cuffs. It did not take long for her to pick the lock, releasing Turner from the effects of Vengestone.

The Master of Time rubbed his wrists, testing out his powers by concentrating on his hourglass and making sure the sand bent to his will. "This feels a bit odd…" he muttered to himself.

The other two masters laughed, only for their attention to be caught by a loud bird call. "That means it's time for you two to go," Skylor pushed the two masters near the window, looking out and catching a glimpse of Neido giving her a thumbs up. She eyed the guards near the gate warily, before aiming a bolt of Time towards them. "Quick! Run!"

Turner, still shocked by the sudden change of events, allowed Norman to pick him up and jump out of the window, Skylor softening their fall with the power of Gravity. The Master of Mind ran as fast as he could, only stopping once they found a car parked far away from the columbarium. "Is this…?"

"Yeah, it's mine. Now get in."

* * *

Another two years passed, the disappearance of the rogue Master of Time quickly transitioning from front page news to not even a footnote in a story.

Many people had theories on why someone would capture Turner, most of which were for evil purposes. A few said that they killed him and buried the body, to unite him with the deceased Master of Mind as a 'romantic' conclusion to their relationship.

In an apartment in the offskirts of Ninjago, a married couple glanced through the daily tabloids as part of their daily routine. The taller one laughed when he read about supposed aliens taking away the Master of Time, pointing it out to his lover. The other man sighed, shaking his head and asking why he was still so immature despite his age.

The taller one just wrapped his arms around the other's waist, kissing him passionately for a brief moment before the other broke the kiss, complaining about his morning breath.

"But I thought you liked it?" The taller one asked teasingly.

His partner just rolled his eyes, reaching out for the syrup to match the pancakes he had just made. His outstretched arm accidently knocked a cup of coffee off the table, which his partner quickly aimed a red bolt towards out of habit. "Sweetheart, I love you and all…" he glanced at the cup of coffee frozen in time with a hint of disappointment, "but you really need to stop knocking cups over every morning. Cleaning the carpet can be a mess, you know."

"Oh look at who's lecturing me about cleaning?" The other rested his face against his propped up hand. "The almighty Thomas Giles, infamous for his inability to throw out the trash every week."

"I told you not to call me that when we're alone, Norman…" 'Thomas' smiled lovingly at his partner. "Or have you forgotten what my real name is?"

Norman shook his head. "I have not…"

"I was once the great Griffin Turner, known for his mastery over Time itself!" Turner boasted, prompting his partner to burst into laughter. "Hey! I'm being serious here!"

"Yeah, and the only thing you were good at was manipulating it to try and destroy all of Ninjago."

Just as Turner was about to reply to that statement, someone knocked on their door. Norman got up from the table, dusting himself off as he went to get the door.

On the other side were Skylor and Neido, both greeting the Master of Mind as they stepped into the apartment. "Geez," Skylor eyed the photo of the couple in a matching pair of suits on their makeshift wedding, displayed for all to see on the coffee table. "You guys really livened up this place, didn't you."

"It's to make sure the pizza delivery guy doesn't try to steal my husband from me," Turner joked. "I lost him for ten years, so I can't afford to lose him this time."

"Yeah, yeah…" Skylor twirled a bunch of keys in her hand. "We were going to bring the team out for lunch. Do you guys want to come along?"

"Meet the team?" Norman frowned at the idea. "But they still don't know that we're alive, right?"

"Actually, you'd be meeting all of the other Elemental Masters if you decided to come along," Neido admitted. "Don't worry, we're meeting at Skylor's restaurant, which has been cleared today to let us all meet again. And," the Master of Imagination caught Turner's eye, "no, no one has died or been replaced yet. You'd probably have to wait a good twenty years or so before this batch starts dying out."

The couple shared a concerned look with each other, only for Norman to nodded in agreement. "We'll go. Just give us five minutes to get changed into something more… presentable."

It was only then did Skylor and Neido realise that the two masters were in their pyjamas, Norman even completing the look with an extremely bad case of bed hair.

* * *

The restaurant was dead silent when the couple walked into the hall, having switched into their old Tournament robes and hairstyles in the bathroom before joining the rest of the Elemental Masters.

The first to react was Jay, who screamed like a banshee when he realised that one of them was the supposedly deceased Neuro.

The second was Karlof, who ran up to the duo and pulled them in for a tight hug.

One by one, the other Elemental Masters realised that the two masters they thought were dead were standing right in front of them, alive and well.

"Dude," Toxkita sighed heavily at the duo. "You didn't have to hide yourselves. We were so worried for you guys when we heard Turner was 'kidnapped', you know."

"Not me," Shade huffed.

Chamile rolled her eyes at the Master of Shadow. "Says the one who was crying at Neuro's funeral, and praying when we found about Turner could be dead."

"H-hey!"

"We're glad you two are back," Lloyd rest a hand on each of their shoulders. "It's great to have the elements of Mind and Time back on our side."

"You guys aren't mad that I tried to kill all of you?" Turner looked around for any signs of hostility, only to be dumbfounded when he found none.

Ash snickered, while Nya shook her head. "Skylor told us what happened between you two after the funeral, which," she shot a dirty look at Neuro, who smiled cheekily, "was apparently just a waste of manpower and time."

"Sorry about that."

Skylor interrupted the converstations by banging a pair of pots together to draw their attentions. "Alright everyone! The food's about to be served! Grab a seat and relax, 'cause tonight it's all about enjoying good food and celebrating the reunion of the Elemental Alliance!"

"Three cheers to the Elemental Alliance!" Lloyd raised a glass of juice up, the others quickly following suit. "Hip hip!"

"HOORAY!"

* * *

After countless questions about their new life together, Norman and Turner finally got back to their apartment with the aid of Skylor.

The Master of Time was drunk, having taken one too many shots of vodak while challenging Karlof to a drinking contest back at the restaurant (which he evidently lost). He stumbled into the living room, nearly tripping over the carpet and collapsing onto the couch.

"Thomas…" Norman sat next to him, ruffling his hair as the Master of Time rested his head on his partner's lap. "You need to go and take a shower before sleeping."

"I told you never to call me that…" Turner looked up at the Master of Mind, admiring his features once again. "And I don't want to take a bath…"

"I'll wash you up if you agree, Griffin." Norman replied, chuckling when the response was a series of rapid nods.

The telepath picked up Turner with ease, walking off to their shared bathroom and dropping him in the tub gently. He turned on the water, letting out a laugh when the Master of Time pointed out that they were both still fully dressed.

One long bath later, the couple were in their underwear and cuddling on their bed, with Turner as the big spoon nuzzling Norman the entire way. "Griffin, there's no way I can sleep if you keep doing that!"

"I don't care." Turner replied softly. "I still can't believe that you're alive, you know?"

Norman sighed, turning around to kiss his partner on the lips. "Yeah, I know that, but I'm here now and it's all that matters."

There was an awkward pause afterwards, which Turner broke with a soft cough. "Um, Neuro?"

"Hm?"

"Ever thought about having kids?"

Norman let out a soft laugh. "And what, let us outlive them? I rather get a dog, to be completely honest."

Turner hummed in agreement. "What kind of dog?"

"A retriever sounds nice. Or maybe a corgi?"

"I like the sound of a corgi or shiba inu."

"Then it's decided," Norman suddenly annouced, "that we're going to the shelter to pick up a dog  
tomorrow."

Turner just nodded, kissing Norman once last time before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep.

The telepath smiled, running his fingers through his partner's hair.

"Sweet dreams, Griffin."


End file.
